Wish I could joke about this, but it's just not that funny. I got to spend yesterday's beautiful, sunny afternoon in the local ER while the Doc cleaned up my hands. I had a friend's dog on a leash when a neighbour's dog attacked. When I hauled Java behind me, the other dog got frustrated at being thwarted, and decided to go through me.
Fortunately, I was able to lock her head down between my knees when she bit down the last time, so she didn't get a chance to chew on me and I was able to resist the urge to pull my hand out of her mouth, so I only got mostly punctures, except for one rip on my palm. She did get right down to the bone above my wrist though, so the joint is really sore... like I fell on it. I've also torn some ligaments in the fingers on the other hand and got some messy scratches on my legs.
I was surprised at how aggressively the medicos dealt with the possibility of infection. I expected maybe a couple of pills, but they put me right on an IV push of antibiotics, and then left the shunt in with the requirement I go back this afternoon for another dose. They also just wrapped the open wounds, in case there was any infection, which would be made worse if it had been stitched inside. So I go back this afternoon for another IV and hopefully to get the palm sewn up.
Being from a medical family, I'm always intrigued being in the ER, and of course, in a small town, you're sure to know at least somebody. One of my friends is an RN, & I've been to lots of dinner parties at her house, so of course I knew my nurse. I got to ask her all about what was going on as she went through the steps, and she introduced me to my doc by first name too, so I could pester him with questions while he debrided the wounds.
The most painful part of the whole afternoon was when he injected the freezing into my palm before cleaning & irrigating it. That shit burns!! I knew I was in trouble when the doc warned me "this is really gonna hurt", then clamped my arm to the table. I have a strong stomach, but when he started putting the (needle-less) syringe into the holes to flush them, I decided I didn't need to inspect his work anymore.
Aside from the discomfort of the sore wrist and bent fingers, I really don't have any pain, so I got off pretty lightly. Not like the poor guy who came into x-ray with me. He had hit a tree while mountain biking and had a very messy 3rd degree shoulder separation. I'll take my wrapped up mitts over his world o' hurt any time.
The real problem is, I'm now stuck waiting for the third event in the "bad luck strikes in threes". See, last Friday, I got a free afternoon off work. Although that hardly sounds like bad luck, it was because, on returning from lunch with my team, we found our building on fire. No major damage as it was held mostly to one of the shops under the theatre where it started, and everyone got out OK. So again, not too bad in the grand scheme of things.
I just hope my good luck in dodging the worst of the bad luck holds for whatever hits next.
